A family in Park Slope, Brooklyn, doing stuff and sharing it with the internet.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Gracias, Mami!

The counter guy at the corner deli said, "Gracias, mami" to me this morning and I was hooked on trying to speak a little Spanish, a language I've never learned.

I have been totally inspired by Benny the Irish Polyglot who reminded me that no one ever feels "ready" to speak a language, but that you just have to do it! Korean was my first language and I have been learning Portuguese for six years. Yet...I NEVER speak the languages. I live in New York. Hello! I go into Korean delis all the time. The drycleaners are Korean! I hear Portuguese all around me. I love languages and I live in New York, where foreign languages are all around me.

A week ago, I decided to speak foreign languages whenever I can. The first place I tried it with was at El Gran Castillo del Jagua, where Rob and I went to get Cuban sandwiches. OK, let me say that I have never studied Spanish. Yes, I've studied Portuguese and there are some similarities, but it's still an entirely different language. I walked in, said buenos dias and said, quiero uno cubano. The guy was really nice to me and said some stuff back in Spanish, which was fun. When we left, I was like, yeah, just trying to speak made that transaction so much more an experience than ordering a sandwich. And I feel like it'll be good for Greyson to witness stuff like that. Like, it's ok to try and fun and other languages are not a big deal.

Today, I ordered a bagel at a diner around the corner. The last time I went in there, I wanted to try Spanish, but I got too shy and didn't. I beat myself up for that because who cares? Why is it so hard? So, today, I said buenos dias! The guy behind the counter said, Buenos dias, como estás?" I said, muy bien...e tu? I don't even know if it's "tu" but I saw Y tu mama tambien and so, "tu"was in my head (later I remembered that tu is "your," not you.). So, the counter guy said bien and what I guess asked me what I'd like. I said, "quiero uno bagel con butter. (I was going to say manteiga, which is butter in Portuguese)" He said, ok, mantegaya...tostado? And I said, si, tostado! I then, asked, como se habla, I'll be right back (I was going to walk Rob to the subway station a few steps away and come back). He said whatever it was and I didn't hear him, but I thought, oh, I'll have to look it up later. Anyway, when I came back, the guy gave me my bagel and I said gracias and he said, gracias mami...bon dia or something. I left smiling because it was so fun communicating in another language.

Not only was it fun, but now I know how to say butter and I will look up how to say, I'll be right back and remember it. You don't have to be in school to learn...education is all around us! (OK, I'm a nerd.)